Just returned from Thursday night racing here in Dallas. Similar format to our own racing at the Glenmore velodrome in Calgary. 40 racers in attendance, 15 raced in the senior mens category 1 & 2 field. Tanya (Dubnicoff) took part in the cat 1& 2 chariot race .

This is a 1.5 lap race from a standing start. Tanya placed 2nd in her heat, and qualified for the final. In the final Nathan Rogut (USA national team) had a great start and the lead into turn 3. Nathan held the lead to the finish. Tanya also had a great start in the final, taking 2nd wheel immediately. Tanya was able to pull up behind Nathan (to a max speed of 65.7 km/hr ) and finish a close 2nd in this open mens field - the field was very competitive! - and the racing very good tonite.

Both starts (heat and final) tonite for Tanya were exceptional. The peak (or max) speed she reached in both rides were also very good (matching her max speed from the time trials this morning). Racing really brought out the "goods" ,and this was a great end to day 1 of our "Olympic rehearsal" here in Dallas.

Tomorrow there is a sprint tournament. We are going to take part in this . There are 5 or 6 locals here with the same speed as the world's best women, and this will be a great day 2 of the rehearsal for Duber ( simulating the 1/4 finals at the Olympics!).

More news tomorrow.

Kurt

Mercury Tries for Division I

The Mercury Cycling Team will apply to become a 1st division team in 2001 in hopes of riding the Tour de France it was announced today.

The Mercury Division of the Ford Motor Company will be the title sponsor worldwide.

"We are very excited about the opportunity to step up. The team has performed brilliantly and the Marketing partnerships this will bring are awesome. The exposure opportunity this will bring is very exciting for the Mercury Brand", states Jennifer Beindorf, Lincoln/Mercury Marketing Communications.

On the Marketing side, The Team will now have the marketing prowess of Y&R/Impiric to help put together the partnerships with Mercury. Mercury has had several very successful promotions built around the team in the past 3 years.

On the team side, Director John Wordin has been busy recruiting riders to the team and expects to have enough points to qualify for the first division.

"We have signed some high profile riders and I hope to release the names Sept. 1. This will be the first time that there will be 2 US 1st Divisions teams and the first time for 2 US teams in the Tour de France. With all of the riders from this season returning, we are very excited about our chances."

The Mercury Cycling Team has won 87 races this season and is ranked #1 in both the Team and Individual NRC standings. The Team has been named North American Team of the Year for the last 4 seasons.

CCA Moving

Effective August 21, 2000, the Canadian Cycling Association office will be re-locating to:

For more information please contact the Chris Rubuliak at 780-466-2401 or the ABA office.

Next weekend is both the Accept the Challenge Mountain Bike Race and the Masters Provincial Road Race on Sunday, August 27.. A pre-ride is being hosted by the ABA on Saturday August 26 at 11:00 am for the Accept the Challenge, please contact Fern at 780-963-6693 or the ABA office for more details.

Electric Bikes on the Streets

Transport Canada and the Centre d'Experimentation des Vehicles Electriques du Quebec, as part of their joint Electric Bike 2000 initiative, are running a 3 month trial of electric bikes. The trial will look at the effectiveness of alternative transportation in improving air quality. 400 cyclists in Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City and St-Jerome (Quebec) will participate.

The World Comes To Bromont in 2 Weeks

Bromont, Quebec -(August 15, 2000) - It is a little more than 2 weeks before cyclists from around the world arrive in Bromont for the 2000 UCI World Masters Mountain Bike Championships, to be held September 1st and 2nd.

The UCI World Masters Mountain Bike Championships are the officially recognized world championship competitions for age group mountain bike competitors. So far, over 270 riders from 19 countries have registered to compete in both cross-country (XC) and downhill (DH) events, ranging in age from 30 to 69 years.

Among the competitors already registered are 36 former champions, including: